caffe

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Director:  Cristiano Bortone

Length:  110mins

Cast:  Hichem Yacoubi, Ario Aita, Fangsheng Lu, Zhuo Tan, Arne De Tremerie, Miriam Dalmazio, Sarah Yimo Li, Koen De Bouw, Ennio Fantastichini

Genre:  Drama

Language:  In Italian with English subtitles

Synopsis

Told through a trio of loosely connected stories, Coffee explores human relationships through the drink that wakes the world up in the morning.

In Italy, out-of-work barista Renzo (Dario Aita), desperate to find a job doing what he loves, becomes ensnared in a roasting factory heist. In Belgium, pawnshop owner Hamed (Hichem Yacoubi, A Prophet) is attacked one night by protesters who steal an antique coffee urn, resulting in a tense life-or-death struggle that mirrors Europe’s current immigration anxieties. In China, Ren Fei’s (Fangsheng Lu), allegiance to his employer and future father-in-law is tested when their chemical plant jeopardizes the coffee plantations in his hometown. Especially when a local young artist (Zhuo Tan), shares with her a bold scheme to expand her father’s eco-friendly coffee farm.

Filmed across different continents and languages, Cristiano Bortone’s feature is also the first ever Italian co-production with China. Citing Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu’s 2006 Oscar-winner Babel as inspiration, Bortone’s Coffee is a panoramic snapshot of a globalised world in the grip of cultural and economic turbulence.

 

AWARDS

  • Nominated, Shangahi International Film Festival, Best Feature Film
  • Nominated, Beijing International Film Festival, Best Film
  • Nominated, David Di Donatello Awards, Best Producer

 

screenings

 

The Screening Room, Masterton

Thursday 16 August, 1.30pm

Book Tickets Here

 

The Bridgeway, Auckland

Monday 3 September, 3.30pm

Tuesday 4 September, 1.00pm

Sunday 9 September, 1.00pm

Book Tickets Here